Refrigerator latch



April s, 1924. 1,489,981

L. G. COPEMAN REFRIGERATOR LATCH Filed Dec. 26. 1922 i Q ...l n 6 M di( lloyd @pff/zaza'.

@Hanley Apr. 8, 1924.

lawaai LLQYD G. COPEMN, 0F FLINT, MICHIGAN.

REFRIGERATOR LATCH.

Application led December 26, 1922. Serial No. SOBJSSALBE'SSUED To all lwhom t may concern:

Be it known that LLOYD G. COPEMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Flint, in the county of Genesee and tate of Michigan, has invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerator Latches, of which the following is `a specification.

This invention relates to refrigerator latches and has for its object a reversible refrigerator latch-one that may be usedy either on a right or left hand door.

It is the object of the present invention to afford a refrigerator latch which works on l5 the principle of a so-called cam latch and yet which has some of the features of a spring latch so that the door can be thrown closed. The latch will latch automatically and hold the door closed. By pressing on the latch lever the door can be closedeven tighter to make an air tight seal.

The casing and the latch lever are so designed that when the latch lever is in the final position of closing the casing is tightly sealed to avoid admission of dirt to the inside of the casing which might otherwise make the-latch somewhat unsanitary. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front elevation of 30, a refrigerator showing the latch in lace. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the atch. Fig. 3 is a view of the underside of the latch shown in Fig. 2 showing in dotted lines the position assumed when the door is merely thrown shut.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic View of the cam action.

a designates a plate or supporting member secured to the door by screws b and in 4 the form of a casting, having a yoke portion v c which is adapted to support a pivot pin d.

` 0n this pivot pin is rotatably supported the lever e. This lever in turn supports rotatably the roll f which forms the striking 45. surface of the lever. An expansion spring h i is contained in a hollowed out casing formed at the rear of the yoke and serves to abut against the apron z' which is an integral part of the lever 'e. The arm that bears the roll together with the handle portion j of the ever, forms a bell crank lever. The handle forms the power arm of this lever while the load arm 1s a double one, one portion of which carries the roll that engages the striker while the other portion forms the .apron and a spring abutment.

The striker g has a face that has a slightly reversed curve. The purpose of this is, that when the door is slammed shut the initial impact of the roll against the striker is not great due to the fact that the striking surace has a very small angle with respect to the line of the travel of the roll. However, after the roll has traveled a slight distance along the striker this angle increases due to the turn in the curve. The roll is then forced back against the resistance of the spring It until it passes over the point) of the striker and drops behind the striker.

When the door is slammed shut the lever will take the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 3.V That is, the roll will just drop behind the point of the striker. This will hold the door closed but not as tightly as it may be. Now referring to Fig. 4, the action of the cam latch feature is diagrammed in detail. When the door is slammed shut the lever will take they position as shown in full lines, the roller positioned as shown. The lever j is then pushedl further down causing the roller to ride on the under cam face m of the striker g. It will be noted that this cam face 'm follows the path as-shown by the circle n for a short distance and then curves downwardly away from said path. The roller takes the position as shown in Fig. 4 by the dotted lines causing the door to be tightly closed making it substantially an air tight'seal. The spring k retains the roller in this position and consequently retains the door in the tightly closedv position.

It will be noted that the same movement that disengages the roll from the striker may also serve to pull the latch open. Furthermore, when the lever is pushed down to its innermost position the apron z' closes the front of. the latch casing while `the body lo of the lever closes the face of the latch cas ing thereby substantially excluding dust from entering the casing and the lock becoming unsanitary.

It will be seen that the latch in its action is an automatic spring latch in one sense and also a cam latch. In its initial automatic closing feature it is a spring lever latch. In the final closing cperation'it is o, cam latch.

One lof the important features of this latch is that the same locks against any opening of the door from a thrust originating onthe inside of the door. It is therefore, an admirable lock for an ice chamber. So many of the locks which are on the market and which are capable of latching actionl are not proof against unlocking when the ice falls against the ice chamber door.

It will be noted that when the striking roll f is pushed into its innerniost osition shown in Fig. 3, the center of this io passes over a line perpendicular to the face of the refrigerator and passing through the ful crum of the roll. Hence, a thrust originating on the inside of the door instead of tending to disen age the roll from behind the striker g wi rive the roll all the further into the socket behind the striker g, by reason of the center ofthe roll lying over this perpendicular line.

What I claim is:

1. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch support, a striker provided with a striker socket behind the striking surface, and a swinging latch member which when forced to its locking position passes over aline per endicular to the face of the refrigerator an passing through the fulcrum point of the latch.

2.Insa refrigerator latch, the combinai tion of a latch support, a lstriker provided surface, and

with a striker socket behind the striking a latch lever pivotally supported on the support so that the striking surface of the latch lever when forced home into the striker socket passes over a line perpendicular to the front of the refrigerator passing through the fulcrurn of the lever.

3. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch support, a lswinging latch lever member pivotally supported on said support and arranged to swing in the plane in which the door opens, and a striker provided with a striker socket behind the striking surface of .the saine, the fulcruin of the lever bein arranged with respect to the striker so t at when the striking surface of the lever is forced home in the striker socket, the same passes over a line perpendicular to the front of the refrigerator passing through the fulcrum ofthe lever.

4. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch support, a bell-crank like latch lever pivotally supported on the latch 5. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch support, a latch lever of the bell crank type pivotally supported on the latch support, a striker provided with a striker socket behind the striking surface of same, and a spring tending to swing the latch lever into the striker socket, the fulcrum of the latch lever being so arranged with respect to the striker that when the striking surface of the latch lever is forced home into the striker socket, the same passes over a line perpendicular to the front of the refrigerator passing through the fulcrum of the lever;

6. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch support, a bell crank latch lever pivotally supported thereon, a striker provided Iwith a striker socket behind the strikin surface of same, and a spring tending to orce the striking surface of the lever into the striker socket, the said lever being arranged to swing in a plane in which door swings and arranged so that when the striking surface of the lever is forced home into the striker socket, the saine swings over a line perpendicular to the front of the refrigerator passing through the fulcrum of the lever.

7. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch housing, a latch lever of the bell crank type pivotally supported on the latch housing and having a roll connected with its end, and a striker having a sloping surface. and a striker socket behind said sloping surface, the roll adapted to first engage t e surface of the striker and then engage behind the saine in the striker socket,

the latch lever swinging inthe same plane that. the door swings.

8. In a refri erator latch, the combination of a latch' ousing, a bell crank latch member pivotally supported in the latch housing and tending to be forced outwardly, a spring for forcing the same outwardly, and a striker having a sloping striking face and a striker socket behind the same, the said latch leverv arranged to swing in the same .lane that the door swings and arrange to have a striking surface engage the face of the striker and then drop behind the same into the striker socket.

9. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch housing, a bell crank lever pivotally supported thereon to swing in the saine plane that the door opens and provided at one end of the bell crank arm with a roller, a spring thrusting on one arm of the bell crank lever for forcing the latch lever yieldingly outward, and a striker provided with a sloping face behind which is a striker socket, said roll arranged to strike the sloping surface of the striker and drop into the socket behind.

10. In a refrigerator latch, the combination of a latch housing, a bell crank lever pivotally sup orted thereon to swing in theA saine plane t et the door swings and provided with an additional rm, a. spring in said housing engaging against said additional arm and. tending to thrust said lever outwardly from said housing, a roll on the end of one of the bell crank arms of the said roll arran ed to engage the fece of the striker and rop into the socket behind, ln testimony whereof l aiix my signsture.

LL@ G. CPE 

